Site selection for hybrid offshore wind and wave power plants using a four-stage framework: A case study in Hainan, China

The site selection for hybrid offshore wind and wave power plants (HOWWPP) is a critical step to a successful HOWWPP project. In this study, a four-stage framework is presented for determining the most suitable marine areas for the siting of HOWWPP. First, wind and wave energy potentials are assessed as a foundation for the implementation of a HOWWPP project. Next, unsuitable areas for the siting of HOWWPP are determined based on exclusion criteria to avoid any potential conflicts of marine spatial planning. Feasible areas (not satisfying the exclusion criteria) are classified and converted into spatial layers separately according to evaluation criteria. Then, the triangular fuzzy analytic hierarchy process is applied to calculate the evaluation criteria weights. Finally, the site suitability of feasible areas is calculated using the weighted overlay approach and then categorized into five classes. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework, a case study in Hainan Province of China was conducted. The results indicate that the marine areas with medium to very high suitability are approximately 1312 km2 (4.7% of the study area) for the deployment of HOWWPP. The obtained results of this study can support potential planners in selecting marine areas for the installation of HOWWPP. •A four-stage framework for the site selection of hybrid offshore wind and wave power plants is proposed.•The framework is based on a combination of geographic information systems and multi-criteria decision making.•The site selection criteria system is divided into two categories: the exclusion criteria and the evaluation criteria.•The weights are obtained based on the triangular fuzzy analytic hierarchy process.